Bluebird Feeders Meal Worm, Crumble, Treats

A collection of specialty feeders designed to offer food to bluebirds. Invite these lovely friends into a habitat by offering meal worms, crumbles or suets they love on a feeder made just for them! Specialty bluebird feeders are designed so that larger species and feeder hogs can not access the food, or at least make it more difficult. Smaller birds such as chickadees - or anything smaller than a bluebird - can get inside these feeders. Also, they are made to hold meal worms so need sides so that live meal worms may not crawl out. Any bird that is the same size as a bluebird or smaller can possibly fit in the feeder but larger birds may not. They are designed to help discourage birds such as starlings and territorial mockingbirds from dominating and eating all of the bluebirds food.

feeding and attracting bluebirds

Most bluebird watchers know that the principal reason that they feed bluebirds is for the pure enjoyment of watching such beautiful creatures. Whether it's a birdhouse, meal worms, or water that draws blue birds to your garden, the benefit of viewing these birds up close is part of what makes bird watching so much fun.

In southern states, bluebirds often fail to find adequate food during late winter and early spring seasons when the berries of wild and ornamental trees or shrubs are gone and there is a scarcity of insects. The crucial time period for birds is from February into April, though earlier or late snows or freezes can be destructive. At that time of year there may be ample food, but when covered with snow or ice the birds may not be able to get to it.

When it comes to foods bluebirds naturally consume in the wild they will eat large quantities of insects. Eighty percent of their diet derives from insects in spring and summer. When insects are not accessible, bluebirds will eat other foods including suet, berries, meal worms and sometimes soft seeds such as sunflower hearts. The fruits consumed in the fall allow for the bluebirds with insulating winter fat. To help attract bluebirds to your yard, consider planting berry bearing trees and shrubs, adding bluebird feeders and providing them with a bird bath. Feeders serving meal worms, suet or berries such as currants or raisins often attract bluebirds.

There are several ways to attract bluebirds to feeders and the best way to succeed is to offer them meal worms on a tray style or specialty feeder. Bluebirds prefer meal worms, and if they are given in such a feeder, they are likely to be taken. The bluebird learns very quickly where the food supply is! To observe this for yourself, lay a shallow glass or plastic dish containing meal worms close to a bluebird's preferred perch. This may be the corner of a deck or patio railing or the top of a bluebird house. The bluebirds will find and check the dish quite quickly and once they have found meal worms in the dish, they will keep returning. Utilizing meal worms you can get them adapted to visiting bird feeding areas. As well insects, these birds eat berries and fruits off of small trees and shrubs so you may want to try placing dried fruit, shelled peanuts, suet nuggets in your bluebird feeder or on a small tray.

bluebird feeders feeder placement

While you will want feeder placement to be in the best spot for you to view, this may not be the perfect spot for the bluebirds. You will have to experiment a bit. Feeders should be located in an spot that they can easily see, particularly at first. Place the feeder in an open area within the bluebirds view from one of their favored perches - a place that that they frequently perch at or visit to forage and hunt their food is always the best location since they can view it easily. Once the food is detected and the birds begin eating from this location, you can move it gradually to a more desired area if you wish. Do not the feeder close to bluebird or other bird houses or bathing areas, but far enough away to not be in a high traffic or active area. The feeder may need to be moved away from human homes if sparrows appear to be a problem. If you find that wrens, sparrows or other birds are contending for bluebird food adding an additional feeder is advised.

Sometimes it takes laying food on a tray near to the bluebird feeder before the bluebirds learn to use the bluebird feeder. Since bluebirds sometimes need to learn to feed from a bluebird feeder it is advised that in order to encourage them to start taking food, have a platform underneath or near the entrance hole so that food may be placed on the platform while the bluebird is figuring out how to go inside the feeder to eat. Place two, three or more temporary flat, open trays on posts near their frequent hunt perch sites. Food on these trays will be visible to birds perched above. Place no feed inside to begin with until the birds actually begin investigating inside. It occasionally helps to lay a few berries the ground below the feeder.

Bluebirds are very attracted to bird baths, particularly if the water is moving, and makes splashing noises that they can hear at a distance. Also, adding a bluebird box is a must!